““The heart is deceitful above all things, And desperately wicked; Who can know it? I, the Lord, search the heart, I test the mind, Even to give every man according to his ways, According to the fruit of his doings.”
Jeremiah 17:9-10 NKJV
https://bible.com/bible/114/jer.17.9-10.NKJV
“For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders,”
Mark 7:21 NKJV
https://bible.com/bible/114/mrk.7.21.NKJV
“Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.”
Genesis 6:5 NKJV
https://bible.com/bible/114/gen.6.5.NKJV
“I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them.” Ezekiel 36:26-27 NKJV
https://bible.com/bible/114/ezk.36.26-27.NKJV
I am often reminded of the common phrases given to me by deceived believers who visit me. Many tell me to pray on their truths and listen to my heart. The Bible is clear that our hearts are wicked so how can it be trusted? I need to pray and ask God to first change my heart before I can trust it. My heart is corrupt at first until God transplants a new one.
If we can’t trust our hearts initially, what should we trust? The first source we can trust is the entire Word of God itself. This means we go to the source itself and pray to ask God to reveal His truths to you. The ask is broad to allow God to lead you to truth without any
preconceived notions. You need to clean out your virus filled operating system entirely and allow God to build an entirely new operating system through the Holy Spirit. Pray and ask God that you do not know the truth as the world is swimming in deception. Ask Him to show you in His Word and through opportunities to take you by the hand and lead. I have prayed this early on as a Christian and boy did He lead me to the truth! He gave me a bonus by showing me and continuing to show me the deception traps through His Word. That’s one of the main reasons God gives you the Holy Spirit.
So, when you are approached by those deceived who tell you to trust your heart, share the above passages with them. Show them how the heart is wicked and in need of transplantation by God first before it can be trusted. Tell them that they need to first look beyond the heart to reach the truth. Show them that Satan deceives and they need God to take their hand and lead them. Above all, share these verses with them:
“Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world.”
I John 4:1-3 NKJV
https://bible.com/bible/114/1jn.4.1-3.NKJV
“I am the Lord, and there is no other; There is no God besides Me. I will gird you, though you have not known Me, That they may know from the rising of the sun to its setting That there is none besides Me. I am the Lord, and there is no other; I form the light and create darkness, I make peace and create calamity; I, the Lord, do all these things.’ “Rain down,
you heavens, from above, And let the skies pour down righteousness; Let the earth open, let them bring forth salvation, And let righteousness spring up together. I, the Lord, have created it.”
Isaiah 45:5-8 NKJV
https://bible.com/bible/114/isa.45.5-8.NKJV
“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”
Ephesians 2:8-10 NKJV
https://bible.com/bible/114/eph.2.8-10.NKJV
“For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God.”
Romans 8:5-8 NKJV
https://bible.com/bible/114/rom.8.5-8.NKJV
So, when you are approached by other “believers”, ask the key test questions:
1. In your belief, Who exactly is God?
2. In your belief, Who exactly is Jesus Christ?
3. In your belief, how do you get salvation?
Check the answers with the Bible and share your findings. God is three persons and one God. Jesus was man and God. There are no other Gods. You cannot become a God. Jesus came to pay for all the sins of true believers through His death a resurrection. You are saved by grace alone. It is a gift from God if you accept it. You need to respond to God and get to know Him and that requires daily prayer and reading. There is Heaven and Hell and nothing in between. The Bible is black and white and is well balanced with “blessed” and “woe”. One understands the Word of God through the Holy Spirit. Understanding is God lead and inspired and not based on human understanding or any preconceived ideas or planted thoughts.
I pray that you not only make disciples of new believers but help those deceived get back on the narrow road towards Christ.
by Kent Brosh a Kawaiaha’o Blog Contributor
Alberta, Canada
